Chair



May 27, 1941-. 2 H. w. KRANZ- CHAIR 7 Filed Nov. 18, I938 INVENTOR. flaw/17" ZJ lira-715 BY 3 q ch51 M 7 Q7 ATToRNmns Patented May 27, 1941 Cleveland Welding Company, a corporation of Ohio Cleveland, Ohio,

Application November 18, 1938, Serial No. 241,241

1 Claim.

The present improvements relating, as indicated, to chairs, have more particular regard to a currently popular type of chair largely used as porch furniture, of which the seat and back comprise complementary stamped-up metal sheets. These members are secured together at their meeting edges and then are supported in a suitable frame or base, as for example, one formed out of re-bent tubing so as to provide two U-shaped side members having their rear lower ends connected by an integral transversely extending section of the tube.

The present invention has more particular regard to the form and construction of the back member or panel in a chair of the type just referred to, and the provision of reinforcing means whereby such member may be suitably strengthened for attachment to the supporting frame and to the seat member.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and 1 of such chair and adjoining rear edge of the seat panel;

Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section through the parts shown in Fig. 2, at a point adjacent one side of the chair;

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view at right angles to that of Fig. 3, as indicated by the line 44 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is a horizontal section taken on the plane indicated by the line 55 of Fig. 4.

The supporting frame for my improved chair, as shown in Fig. 1, is desirably but not necessarily formed out of a single piece of metal tubing rebent upon itself to provide two U-shaped side members I, l The lower ends of such side members are connected by an integral transversely extending section 2 of the tube, While the upper rear ends 3 are designed to be adjustably secured to the back panel 4 of the chair. The seat panel 5, as previously indicated, will desirably be made complementary to such back panel and is secured at its rear edge to the lower edge of such back panel. Such sea-t panel is also directly attached to the U-shaped side members of the supporting frame at points 6, 6.

Both such seat and back panels are formed by a stamping operation out of relatively light gauge sheet metal, the surface of the panels being contoured or having an ornamental design impressed thereon at the time of formation. In addition, said rear panel is formed along its respective sides with flanges l, l bent substantially at right angles to the body of the panel and along its lower edge with a similar flange 8. The juxtaposed ends of such side and bottom flanges substantially contact but need not be continuous; in other words, the flanges are not formed by a drawing operation.

The seat panel 5 is likewise formed along its respective side edges with downwardly directed flanges 9, but its rear edge which is designed to be attached to the lower edge of the back panel extends substantially in the same plane as the seat itself (see Figs. 2 and 3).

In order to impart the desired rigidity to the back panel and provide for effective connection of its lower flange 8 with the rear edge of the seat panel, I employ reinforcing metal strips H] of the form clearly shown in Fig. 2, one against the inner face of each side flange I of said panel. Such strips are of approximately the same width as the flanges l, and of a length to extend from the upper edge of the flange to the lower end thereof, the lower end H of the strip being bent at right angles so as to overlie for a short distance the corresponding portion of the lower flange 8 on the back panel. The strips II] are preferably secured to the respective flanges by spot-welding, as indicated, and may be similarly, although not necessarily, spot-welded to the lower flange 8.

To provide for the adjustable connection between the rear ends 3 of the tubular supporting frame and the back panel of the chair, the side flanges I of the latter, together with the attached strips H), may be formed with slots I2 located and shaped as shown in Fig. 2. Bolts l3 provided with Wing nuts (not shown) are passed through the ends 3 of the tubular frame and the slots to adjustably position the parts in relation to each other.

The back panel fashioned in the manner just described, is attached to the seat panel by fastoning means in the form of a series of short bolts hi on the order of stove bolts which pass through suitably spaced apertures in the lower flange 8 and the underlying rear edge portion of the seat panel. The outermost of these bolts pass through not merely such flange of the back panel and edge portion of the seat panel, but also through the angular extension ll of the reinforcing strip l0, thus constituting of the latter a rigid brace which effectively resists distortion, both in a lateral and transverse direction, of the seat and back assembly. At the same time, any tendency of the lower flange 8 to bend downwardly under a weight resting on the seat panel is resisted.

Still further strength and rigidity may be secured by slightly deforming the flange 8 in a longitudinal direction with a corresponding deformation of the rear edge of the seat panel 5, as best shown in Figs. 2 and 3. The effect of such deformation is to strengthen that portion of the chair, especially in a lateral direction.

As a result of the construction just described, a chair of the type in question is obtained, which possesses unusual rigidity in all directions and resistance to the strains to which such a chair is subjected when in use. At the same time, the operations involved in the fabrication of the panel sections and their assembly are of a simple character which lend themselves readily to more or less automatic methods of manufacture.

Other modes of applying the principle of my invention may be employed instead of the one explained, change being made as regards the structure herein disclosed, provided the means stated by the following claim or the equivalent of such stated means be employed.

I therefore particularly point out and distinctly claim as my invention:

In a chair, a sheet metal seat member with turned down side flanges and a sheet metal back member with turned back side and bottom flanges, a flat metal reenforcing strip attached to the inner side of each of said side flanges of said back member, the lower end of said strip being rectangularly bent in position to be secured to said bottom flange, said bottom flange and said seat member adjacent its rear edge being slightly longitudinally deformed, and fastening means passing through said reenforcing strip, said bottom flange and said seat member adjacent its horizontal rear edge portion.

HARRY W. KHAN Z. 

